Etymology Explorer › German

Where does “Bleistift” come from?

Bleistift (German) comes from German blei, from Middle High German blī, from Old High German blīo, from Proto-West Germanic blīwī, from Proto-Germanic blīwiją, from Proto-Indo-European mliH-wó-s, from Proto-Indo-European mleh₁y- — to be weak, weary, tired.

Bleistift (German): pencil

Definitions

  1. pencil

Ancestry of “Bleistift”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Germanblei—
2Middle High Germanblī—
3Old High Germanblīometallic lead
4Proto-West Germanicblīwīlead
5Proto-Germanicblīwijąlead
6Proto-Indo-EuropeanmliH-wó-s—
7Proto-Indo-Europeanmleh₁y-to be weak, weary, tired

Words derived from “Bleistift”

  • Bleistiftzeichnung
  • Bleistiftspitzer
  • Bleistiftkasten
  • Bleistiftanspitzer
  • blajštift
Every word from Proto-Indo-European mleh₁y- →